First Alert Weather: Red Alert through early Thursday for rain, wind and possible flooding

The rain was on and off Wednesday evening, but it started falling steadily and heavily from about 7:30 p.m. on along the coast of Long Island.

The wind was also picking up, affecting the tide in Freeport.

No amount of wind or rain in Nassau County can blow away the flooding concerns of people living and working near the coast.

"Nobody likes it," said Chari Smith, a bartender at The Helm in Freeport.

The bar and restaurant's back patio and driveway both flooded just last month.

"We're gonna be leaving early. Everybody already moved their cars out. The last flood, the owner and her daughter lost their cars here," Smith said.

"We don't expect severe flooding, but you never know," Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said.

Blakeman is asking people who live near the coast to stay home.

"Stay in, stay off the roads. If there's an emergency, let the professionals deal with it. Dial 911," he said.

While freezing temperatures are not expected, Blakeman says the county is ready to salt and plow the roads if the weather changes unexpectedly.

As for the folks at The Helm? They're just hoping to avoid a repeat of last time.

"It's a constant thing of having to watch the tides, making sure that your property is OK, your businesses are OK, so yeah, it's hard," Smith said.

CBS2's Tim McNicholas did spot some minor flooding on a couple Nassau County streets, and that's only going to get worse as the rain continues.

CLICK HERE to see the very latest track of the storm.

Alerts: A Red Alert remains in effect through 4 a.m. Thursday for rain, wind and possible flooding.

Currently: Moderate to heavy bouts of rain are blanketing the area. Only the most northwest corner of our area is holding onto any frozen precipitation. The rain will continue to push east and north overnight with moderate to heavy bouts. It will clear the East End between 5-7 a.m.

Some radar estimated rainfall has nearly 2 inches near the Twin Forks, with many seeing .75" or more. 

Coastal Flood Warnings are in effect through 3 a.m. Thursday for southern Queens and Nassau County for minor to moderate inundation (1-3 feet). Places that normally flood due to high and astronomical tides will likely have some flooding.

Wind Advisories are in effect. Gusts near 40mph have been seen so far.

Temps: It's wild and mild with temps in the lower 50s at 9 p.m. in January.

Snowfall Numbers: Weak in general. The dry slots that were set up Wednesday afternoon hurt our chances for a bigger number before the rain turnover. A silver lining:  it likely limited our flood chances elsewhere. Rain on top of snow is not good.  Winter Weather Alerts expire at 10 p.m.

Regarding Our Snowless Streak: We took over the second spot today at 322 days without measurable snow. The record set in 2020 is 332, and we might break that. Next week looks mild again.

Racing to the ground, fat, wet flakes made for beautiful scenery in suburbs northwest of New York City on Wednesday afternoon.   

Barren trees and reeds were transformed in Nyack with an evergreen first to boast signs of sticking. 

Wet, winding roads in Sloatsburg were only occasionally slushy while a look of to the side revealed stunning sights – lawns and homes blanketed white. Proof it is, in fact, winter.

Salt spreaders loaded up in Ringwood, New Jersey, in preparation for the next round. Crews already hit the roads early Wednesday afternoon.

In West Milford, a snowplow stood at attention, ready to move along when the next round hit, and salt was stacked at stores for homeowners to grab and go home to ensure potentially slick surfaces stay safe.

This quick burst of winter weather left some smiling. 

"I'm happy today. When I see the snow, I said, oh my god, we have the snow today," West Milford resident Besime Elbrus said. "Everything turned white. It's beautiful."

"I love it and I wish we had more snow this year ... It's unfortunate we don't have more snow," Wanaque resident Johnny Elbrus said.

Fat, wet snowflakes started falling shortly before 2 p.m. in Nyack, N.Y.

By 3 p.m., a fresh coat covered the grass, stone walls, and homes in Sloatsburg. Roads stayed mainly wet, with a little slush down the middle. And wild turkeys seemingly unfased by snow searched for food and checked out the Mobile Weather Lab. 

Salt spreaders get loaded up in Ringwood, N.J. in preparation for the next round. Crews already hit early this afternoon.  

"Schools closed early today, so we didn't have to worry about the buses and all," said George Stout, assistant superintendent of the Ringwood Department of Public Works. "We had a slight covering of snow on the roads. We have a crew of approximately one dozen trucks out there. We pretreated earlier today and we salted, pushed everything off." 

"We're going to get another little squall, send the guys back out. We're going to take care of it and be done for the night," he added. 

"So far, it's not bad. It's better than when it gets real hot around here," said Jan Braidech of Hewitt, N.J. "It's kind of a welcomed refresh to what we've had during the whole year. It was even hot in December. Now we're in January, it's acting normal."

Lonnie Quinn has a look at the forecast. 

The National Weather Service says the latest first measurable snow ever recorded was on Jan. 29, 1973. 

"If no measurable snowfall occurs by Jan. 28, this season will replace the current record," the National Weather Service tweeted. 

Here's a look at revised snowfall totals, just before 3 p.m.

Snow: Winter weather advisories are in effect as far south as Fairfield, Connecticut, and western Passaic in New Jersey. There is nothing in Bergen, Hudson, Essex or the five boroughs as of Tuesday evening. The snow will have a heavy and wet quality to it, not easy to shovel. Just wait and let the rain do its thing. Much of the snowfall is expected to be washed away or greatly reduced, except in places well north and west.

Wind: A wind advisory is in effect for a sliver of the New Jersey shore and Nassau and Suffolk counties for gusts up to 50 mph late Wednesday into early Thursday morning.

Coastal flooding: There is a coastal flood advisory for minor flooding late Wednesday into early Thursday coinciding with the evening high tide cycles. There is a warning for Nassau County's South Shore for moderate flood risk.

Rain: There are no flood alerts yet, but the rain looks heavy at times, especially after 4 p.m. We're forecasting 0.75-1.50 inches with up to 2 inches possible east of New York City.

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday: Snow spreads across northern New Jersey and possibly New York City.

1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday: Rain starts to overtake the snow from the south. Still snowing north, accumulating well north.

4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday: Bouts of heavier rain start to move north. This will be the second push of the mixing line north, and this will wash away much of the accumulation we just picked up. The evening commute looks particularly nasty. Possible flood risks, and the winds start to crank up. 

8 p.m. Wednesday to 2 a.m. Thursday: Heavy rain and gusty winds push northeast. Coastal flood risk possible too. 

2 a.m. to 8 a.m. Thursday: Clearing out, but Thursday is a windy one, with temps falling into the 30s by the late afternoon.

Our Winter Storm Survival Guide has information about how to protect yourself, your pets and your property in the event of a storm. 

CLICK HERE for everything from travel delays to power outages and more.